Mike and Steve came down from Seattle for Spring Break and I knew this would be a good chance to finally do the 27 Waterfalls excursion. Just south of the town of Imbert, about 45 minutes from Cabarete, lies a giant Brugal rum sign which marks the inconspicuous entrance. Dropping off the freeway onto a dirt road that runs through a sugar cane field, you drive for a few minutes before reaching a very nice and reportedly very new reception area, guide cabin, restaurant, giftshop, etc. -- profoundly more than the ticket shack that existed just a year ago. After securing a guide and deciding on the full 27 waterfalls option, the three of us set off for a 3hour tour up a series of waterfalls and pools stretching appoximately 4km up into the hills. The path crisscrosses confusingly through dense forest, streams, and waterfalls and would be nearly impossible to navigate without a guide. Each of the guides does only one trek per day - ours was great and his gutsy six-year-old son joined us for the fun, adding that element of "well, if a six-year-old just did it..." The largest drop was perhaps 35 or 40 feet, a bit farther (and obviously into shallower water) than usual because of the lack of significant rainfall over the past few months. Ailing, being preggers and not able to join us, advised from her first time at the waterfalls a year ago that we should arrive early in the morning and be the first ones up and down. We did so and didn't see another soul until we were almost all the way down and started running running into the large groups of 20+ people coming from Cabarete as part of the Iguana Mama Adventure Tours. Being there early insured that we were able to do the jumps as many times as we wanted and the guide was able to take his time explaining the flora and fauna to us. I can now share the sentiment with the others I have met who have exclaimed, "27 Waterfalls one of the coolest things you can do in DR."
